During the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Moreno refereed the round of 16 match between tournament favourites Italy and co-hosts South Korea on June 18. Following Italy's elimination from the tournament after a 2–1 extra time loss, Moreno's performance was criticised for several decisions: he awarded South Korea a controversial penalty in the first half (which eventually failed to capitalise) and later disallowed a possible golden goal by Damiano Tommasi for a non existent offside, as well as showing a second yellow card to Francesco Totti for an arguable dive in South Korea's penalty area in the first half extra time while he was 37 meters away from play.[1][2]
In September 2002, while seeking election to the Quito City Council, Moreno was suspended for twenty matches[3] and investigated by Ecuadorian football authorities.[4] This came after he made timekeeping errors in a match he officiated between L.D.U. Quito and Barcelona S.C.FIFA also investigated him due to controversies "...in Japan, Italy and South America over the past few months".[5]
In May 2003, in his third game back from suspension, Moreno was again suspended, this time for one match, after he sent off three players from visiting Deportivo Quito in a 1–1 draw with Deportivo Cuenca.[6] He retired the following month, blaming low performance marks for his retirement.[7]
Legal troubleedit
Moreno was arrested on September 21, 2010 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City while trying to smuggle in six kilograms (over thirteen pounds) of heroin, which was hidden in his underwear.[8] In January 2011, he pleaded guilty to the charges in a New York courthouse, facing a possible ten years in prison.[9] On September 23, 2011, Moreno was sentenced to 2+1⁄2 years in prison on the heroin smuggling charges.[10] He was released from prison 26 months later and returned to Ecuador.[11]
Referencesedit
^"Fifa investigates Moreno". BBC News. 13 September 2002.
^"Soccer Referees on Run, and They Can't Hide". The New York Times. 21 June 2002.
^"Referee suspended for 20 matches". Soccernet. 11 September 2002. Retrieved 6 August 2006.
^"FIFA investigates Moreno". Soccernet. 13 September 2002. Retrieved 6 August 2006.
^"Fifa investigates Moreno". BBC News. 13 September 2002.
^. The New Zealand Herald. 23 May 2003. Archived from the original on 27 March 2020. Retrieved 6 August 2006.
^. Sports Illustrated. 10 June 2003. Archived from the original on 16 October 2003. Retrieved 6 August 2006.
^"L'arbitro che eliminò l'Italia da Corea 2002 arrestato a New York con sei chili di eroina". La Repubblica. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
^Ex-Referee Byron Moreno Pleads Guilty To Heroin Smuggling
^. Archived from the original on 6 December 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
External linksedit
Wikinews has related news:
Former Ecuadorian football referee Byron Moreno arrested for drug smuggling
(archive)
January 01, 1970
byron, moreno, this, spanish, name, first, paternal, surname, moreno, second, maternal, family, name, ruales, byron, aldemar, moreno, ruales, born, november, 1969, ecuadorian, former, football, referee, convicted, drug, trafficker, served, fifa, world, interna. In this Spanish name the first or paternal surname is Moreno and the second or maternal family name is Ruales Byron Aldemar Moreno Ruales born November 23 1969 is an Ecuadorian former football referee and convicted drug trafficker who served in the FIFA World Cup as an International Referee from 1996 to 2003 Byron MorenoMoreno in 2021Full nameByron Aldemar Moreno RualesBorn 1969 11 23 November 23 1969 age 54 Quito EcuadorDomesticYearsLeagueRole0000 2003Serie ARefereeInternationalYearsLeagueRole1996 2003FIFA listedReferee Contents 1 Refereeing career 2 Legal trouble 3 References 4 External linksRefereeing career editDuring the 2002 FIFA World Cup Moreno refereed the round of 16 match between tournament favourites Italy and co hosts South Korea on June 18 Following Italy s elimination from the tournament after a 2 1 extra time loss Moreno s performance was criticised for several decisions he awarded South Korea a controversial penalty in the first half which eventually failed to capitalise and later disallowed a possible golden goal by Damiano Tommasi for a non existent offside as well as showing a second yellow card to Francesco Totti for an arguable dive in South Korea s penalty area in the first half extra time while he was 37 meters away from play 1 2 In September 2002 while seeking election to the Quito City Council Moreno was suspended for twenty matches 3 and investigated by Ecuadorian football authorities 4 This came after he made timekeeping errors in a match he officiated between L D U Quito and Barcelona S C FIFA also investigated him due to controversies in Japan Italy and South America over the past few months 5 In May 2003 in his third game back from suspension Moreno was again suspended this time for one match after he sent off three players from visiting Deportivo Quito in a 1 1 draw with Deportivo Cuenca 6 He retired the following month blaming low performance marks for his retirement 7 Legal trouble editMoreno was arrested on September 21 2010 at John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City while trying to smuggle in six kilograms over thirteen pounds of heroin which was hidden in his underwear 8 In January 2011 he pleaded guilty to the charges in a New York courthouse facing a possible ten years in prison 9 On September 23 2011 Moreno was sentenced to 2 1 2 years in prison on the heroin smuggling charges 10 He was released from prison 26 months later and returned to Ecuador 11 References edit Fifa investigates Moreno BBC News 13 September 2002 Soccer Referees on Run and They Can t Hide The New York Times 21 June 2002 Referee suspended for 20 matches Soccernet 11 September 2002 Retrieved 6 August 2006 FIFA investigates Moreno Soccernet 13 September 2002 Retrieved 6 August 2006 Fifa investigates Moreno BBC News 13 September 2002 Controversial ref suspended again The New Zealand Herald 23 May 2003 Archived from the original on 27 March 2020 Retrieved 6 August 2006 Ecuador ref Moreno complains at low marks Sports Illustrated 10 June 2003 Archived from the original on 16 October 2003 Retrieved 6 August 2006 L arbitro che elimino l Italia da Corea 2002 arrestato a New York con sei chili di eroina La Repubblica 21 September 2010 Retrieved 21 September 2010 Ex Referee Byron Moreno Pleads Guilty To Heroin Smuggling Ex referee sentenced to 2 years Byron Moreno enfrenta otra indagacion Archived from the original on 6 December 2012 Retrieved 4 December 2012 External links edit nbsp Wikinews has related news Former Ecuadorian football referee Byron Moreno arrested for drug smuggling 2002 FIFA World Cup profile archive Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Byron Moreno amp oldid 1218752094, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
